A smartphone with the Uber logo in the background is being held by a woman in silhouette.
550 women who claim they were abused by drivers using the ride-hailing app are suing Uber in the US.

Allegations in the complaint state that Uber drivers have “kidnapped, sexually assaulted, sexually beat, raped, wrongfully imprisoned, stalked, tormented, or otherwise attacked women passengers.”

On Wednesday, the matter was submitted to the San Francisco County Superior Court.

The BBC was informed by an Uber representative that “sexual assault is a heinous crime and we take every single incident seriously.”

“Safety is paramount, which is why Uber has developed new safety measures, implemented survivor-centric policies, and increased its level of transparency on significant occurrences. While we are unable to comment on ongoing litigation, we will continue to put safety first in all that we do “Added they.

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The sexual assaults allegedly occurred in “several states,” according to the complaint, which was brought by lawyers at the law firm Slater Slater Schulman.

Additionally, it stated that at least 150 additional probable instances are “being researched.”

According to the lawsuit, Uber knew that some of its drivers were raping and sexually assaulting female passengers as early as 2014. The suit, however, asserts that the corporation put “expansion over client safety.”

According to Adam Slater, founding partner of Slater Slater Schulman, “Uber’s entire business model is built on offering people a safe ride home, yet rider safety was never their focus – development was, at the expense of their passengers’ safety.”

Uber published its second US Safety Report last month, revealing that 998 sexual assault occurrences, including 141 rape claims, were reported in 2020.

The business claimed in the report that between 2019 and 2020, it had received 3,824 reports of the five most serious types of sexual assault.

There were 5,981 reports of sexual assault in the company’s first safety report, which covers incidences from 2017 to 2018.

The most severe types of sexual assault reported by Uber include rape and “non-consensual sexual penetration,” or the “non-consensual kissing of a non-sexual body part.”

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by James Clayton, a technology reporter for North America
These accusations are of an extremely serious character. It is incredible that 550 women have come forward.

The case might be considered as further proof of Uber’s terrible workplace culture, which makes it much more detrimental to the corporation.

An ex-Uber executive made numerous allegations of negligence on Monday.

One of the pieces of information he disclosed was that Uber had a “kill switch” that it could activate if law enforcement showed up to prevent them from getting information.

The hacked records, according to Mark MacGann, revealed a common theme: Uber prioritized growth above all else.

Additionally, it is alleged in this case that the business purposefully covered up the fact that Uber drivers had sexually attacked women.

In other words, although the firm was aware of an issue, it was publicly claiming that its rides were safe.

The corporation was accused of failing to properly check the backgrounds of its drivers, according to the lawsuit.

Uber claims that the business has transformed recently and that it regrets its previous behavior.

Investors are concerned that given all the negative headlines, customers would start looking elsewhere for their next ride.